Troopers Handing Out Free Tri-rail Tickets

That's the message Florida Highway Patrol troopers will be giving to drivers on Interstate 95 in Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties for the next three months.

Starting this holiday weekend, officers began handing out free train tickets and brochures about Tri-Rail to drivers who have been in accidents or have been stopped for speeding. The two round-trip tickets must be used before Oct. 15.

"This safety campaign is intended to make the highway safer and to save lives," said David Rush, chairman of the Tri-Rail board of directors, when he and the Florida Highway Patrol announced the joint venture last week.

Col. Ron Grimming, director of the Highway Patrol, said 63 people in Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties have been killed on I-95 in the past 18 months. Hundreds more have been injured, he said.

The campaign was announced last week because the Fourth of July holiday is particularly deadly, Grimming said. In the past five years, 128 people have died in traffic crashes statewide during the holiday weekend.

Grimming said he expects his officers to hand out 20,000 brochures during the campaign.

"We hope that we can encourage drivers to consider riding Tri-Rail as a safe alternative to driving on Interstate 95," Grimming said. "The patrol is hopeful that this campaign will result in less congestion on I-95 and fewer motorists becoming victims of serious or fatal traffic crashes."

Tri-Rail operates commuter trains between West Palm Beach and Miami parallel to I-95.